1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a package containing two different food products and a method for heating same in a microwave oven, and pertains more particularly to such a package having two compartments, popcorn kernels being contained in one compartment and an additive material in the other.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The great majority of packages for microwave popping in one's home are fabricated with only a single chamber in which both the unpopped corn and liquified fat are contained. Most of these packages provide an acceptable popped product. However, where a flavor component is to be added to the popped corn, this is usually left up to the consumer. If the consumer wishes to add a flavor, the consumer must prepare such an additive separately, then adding it to the popped corn after first removing the popped corn from the package. This can be messy and a nuisance, so users who would otherwise like a flavoring material added to their popped corn simply do not bother with the extra work involved in achieving a flavored popcor product.
One attempt to add a flavor to the corn during the period in which it is being popped in its package, however, is described in Darrell C. Burdette U.S. Pat. No. 4,596,713, issued on June 24, 1986 titled "Microwave Food Packets Capable of Dispersing a Food Additive During Heating." Several embodiments are disclosed in which an additive or flavoring is contained in a separate packet within the larger package in which the corn kernels are contained. When the packet reaches a sufficiently elevated temperature, the plastic film constituting the packet softens sufficiently to permit opening thereof, thereby releasing the additive onto the popped corn. Inasmuch as the packet is contained completely within the confines of the package, the release of the additive onto the popped corn is determined almost exclusively by temperature, although to some extent by whatever pressure is developed within the packet. Being in the same chamber with the corn to be popped, the packet and its contents are for all intents and purposes subjected to the same elevated temperature needed for effective popping. Certain additives, however, such as cheese coatings, should not be heated to such an extent, for they become unstable, scorch, lose their taste and otherwise deteriorate when overheated. The employment of a heater patch, which enhances the popping of popcorn, would only aggravate the situation, for a composition containing cheese would be even more likely to burn.
While not concerned with the popping of corn, attention is also directed to Charles N. Standing U.S. Pat. No. 4,132,811, granted on Jan. 2, 1979, et al. for "Food Package for Assuring Uniform Distribution of Microwave Energy and Process for Heating Food." One embodiment disclosed in this patent involves a transverse seal for forming two compartments, one compartment containing a food product, such as cookies, cakes or biscuits, and the other containing a small amount of water so that the resulting vapor produced by the microwave heating of the water is instrumental in both moving the product and supplying moisture thereto via the seal when broken (or through a vent when provided).